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Project

Products as enablers for pro-environmental behaviour: investigation of reusable alternatives for single-use plastics.

Recently, the European Union decided on a ban for several types of single-use plastics by 2021 and a considerable reduction of many more. By then, good alternatives for these products are desired. As a response to this ban and to consumers' avoidance of plastic litter, (new and existing) reusable alternative products come into scope. Existing examples of replacement products of single-use plastics include reusable straws, reusable shopping bags, reusable vegetable bags, reusable lunch wraps/boxes, menstrual cups, washable diapers, safety razors, reusable coffee travel cups, reusable cotton buds… . These products offer good alternatives to reduce our environmental impact, but only if they are used in the proper manner. Due to their characteristics of reusability and longevity, they need to be stronger, thicker and consist of more material or other materials that have a larger impact during production (such as metal or glass). Based on different LCA studies, the example of a single-use LDPE bag learns us that in order to be environmentally better for climate change: cotton bags should have to be reused 52 times (organic cotton: 149 times), paper bags: 43 times; PP woven bags: 5 times; and PET bags: 8 times. Clearly, if these products are used in the same manner as single-use products, the environmental impact will be even worse. For some alternatives, the question arise if this is at all possible. In this research project, we will study of the long(er) term usage of these reusable alternatives, in order to investigate what motivates or demotivates people to keep on using these products. Long-term is defined as the usage time that starts from the time that equals the similar climate change impact. In addition, there is interest in gaining insights as to the effect of the usage of these types of products on the general attempt towards sustainable living. Understanding the driving variables towards adopting reusable alternatives will form the basis to set up a model on how products or product service systems can influence the long-term product interaction and motivate sustainable living.
Date:1 Oct 2019 →  30 Sep 2023
Keywords:SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION, PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT, ECODESIGN
Disciplines:Human-centred design, Life cycle engineering